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Section 2.1 GEOLOGY APPLICATION FOR APPROVAL OF THE ASPEN PROJECT VOLUME 1: PROJECT DESCRIPTION INTRODUCTION 2.1.1 SCOPE The project is situated in the northeastern portion of the Athabasca oil sands region and is targeting bitumen deposits trapped in the Cretaceous-aged sandstones of the McMurray Formation. The stratigraphy within the project area (i.e., Muskeg Lease boundary) is shown in: Figure 2-1, Stratigraphic Column for the Project Area Figure 2-2, Schematic of the Stratigraphic Architecture in the Project Area Within the project area, the Mannville Group is subdivided into the: Grand Rapids Formation Clearwater Formation, including the Wabiskaw Member McMurray Formation The Mannville Group unconformably overlies the carbonates of the Devonian Waterways Formation (Beaverhill Lake Group) and underlies the Tertiary and Quaternary deposits that make up the current surface material. The type well representative of the project area and used for reference throughout this application is 1AA/03-36-093-07W4 (project type well). Figure 2-3 shows the stratigraphy at the project type well location and is annotated with Imperial’s subsurface nomenclature. The stratigraphy of the project type well was compared to well 1AA/10-15-095-5W4 (described in Hein 2006) and to the exploration well 1AA/16-14-094-07W4 located in the project area. Figure 2-4 is a comparison of the stratigraphy at these three wells. 2.1.2 AVAILABLE DATA The development area consists of 14.5 sections (37.6 km2) located in the central northeastern portion of the project area (see Figure 2-5), with up to 11 oil sands evaluation (OV) wells per section. A total of 140 wells penetrate the McMurray Formation within the project area (see Figure 2-6). All of these wells are vertical. Table 2-1 lists these wells and their associated data, as of March 31, 2013. December 2013 Imperial Oil Resources Ventures Limited 2-1 CC012 Section 2.1 GEOLOGY INTRODUCTION 2.12 AVAILABLE DATA (cont’d) Most wells have: a standard log suite, including gamma ray, resistivity (shallow, medium and deep), spontaneous potential, density and neutron porosity, caliper a sonic log, either borehole compensated or dipole sonic formation microimager (FMI) data recorded Of the 140 wells, 133 were cored through the McMurray Formation. Most of these cores were analyzed in the core lab to measure oil saturation. Selected cores were also analyzed for grain size distribution, porosity and permeability. Formation pressure data was collected from selected wells using either a modular formation dynamics tester (MDT) or Pressure Xpress tool (XPT). During the 2012 – 2013 drilling season, Imperial drilled 13 appraisal wells in the project area. Of these 13 appraisal wells: wells 1F1/04-02-094-07W4 and 102/04-02-094-07W4 were cased and used to evaluate the lower Grand Rapids Formation as a potential water source well 1F1/02-17-093-07W4 was cased and used to evaluate the basal McMurray aquifer as a potential water source in the southwestern portion of the project area well 1AA/15-03-094-07W4 was used for caprock minifrac testing and a preserved caprock core was collected for geomechanical laboratory testing The remaining nine wells were drilled to delineate the bitumen resource and to investigate the GSZ that exists in the upper portion of the McMurray Formation. High-resolution 3-D seismic data recorded over about 90% of the project area compensates for the lower well density at the edges of the project area. Imperial recorded 3-D surveys in 2009 and 2010 covering 46.5 sections of the project area (110 km2) (see Figure 2-7). 2-2 Imperial Oil Resources Ventures Limited December 2013 CC012 Section 2.1 GEOLOGY INTRODUCTION Figure 2-1: Stratigraphic Column for the Project Area December 2013 Imperial Oil Resources Ventures Limited 2-3 CC012 Section 2.1 GEOLOGY INTRODUCTION Figure 2-2: Schematic of the Stratigraphic Architecture in the Project Area 2-4 Imperial Oil Resources Ventures Limited December 2013 CC012 Section 2.1 GEOLOGY INTRODUCTION Figure 2-3: Project Type Well (1AA/03-36-093-07W4) December 2013 Imperrial Oil Resources Ventures Limited 2-5 CC012 Section 2.1 GEOLOGY INTRODUCTION Figure 2-4: Comparison of the Stratigraphy in the Project Area to Hein 2006 Stratigraphy December 2013 Imperrial Oil Resources Ventures Limited 2-6 CC012 Section 2.1 GEOLOGY INTRODUCTION Figure 2-7: Seismic Coverage, Core and FMI Data in the Project Area December 2013 Imperial Oil Resources Ventures Limited 2-13 CC012 Section 2.2 GEOLOGY APPLICATION FOR APPROVAL OF THE ASPEN PROJECT VOLUME 1: PROJECT DESCRIPTION STRATIGRAPHY 2.2.1 PALEOZOIC The Paleozoic stratigraphy unconformably overlies crystalline Precambrian basement (see Figure 2-1, shown previously). To date, one well in the project area (103/04-02-094-07W4) has been drilled through the Devonian section, reaching the Precambrian granitic basement at total depth (TD) and cored from the Lower Watt Mountain Formation to Precambrian (see Figure 2-8). Based on well 103/04-02-094-07W4, the Paleozoic stratigraphy in the project area in ascending order is as follows: Granite Wash – although absent in this well it might occur elsewhere in the project area in structurally low areas on the top Precambrian surface. In that case, it is expected the Granite Wash would be feldspathic sandstone. Contact Rapids Formation – 19 m thick, consisting of variegated red and green siltstone at base, overlain by green siltstone, overlain by nodular anhydrite, capped by a dark grey mudstone. This interval has abundant horizontal to sub-horizontal fractures filled with gypsum. No discernible porosity is present over the project area. Keg River Formation – a grey and cream-coloured dolostone and minor limestone and interpreted to be 53 m thick. It contains brachiopods and crinoids in the basal 10 m and the remainder is stromatoporoid-rich with intervals of limestone breccia filled with calcite. Vuggy porosity is present in zones. Prairie Evaporite Formation – 19 m thick (pending petrographic confirmation), comprised of laminated grey dolostone that is dedolomitized (i.e., converted to calcite) in the upper part and brecciated at the top. Vuggy porosity occurs in zones. Watt Mountain Formation – 23 m thick, the lower part of which was cored. Based on the core and regional observations, it is a light green-grey dolomitic mudstone with minor anhydrite. No discernible porosity is present in the well. Slave Point Formation – 2 m thick, and based on log response and regional core observations it is brown to grey limestone and dolomitic limestone, occasionally fossiliferous. This formation was not cored. No discernible porosity is present over the project area. December 2013 Imperial Oil Resources Ventures Limited 2-15 CC012 Section 2.2 GEOLOGY STRATIGRAPHY 2.2.1 PALEOZOIC (cont’d) Waterways Formation – 64 m thick, with the Calumet Member at subcrop beneath the McMurray Formation. Elsewhere in the project area seismic data indicated that the pre-Cretaceous erosion cuts down to the stratigraphic level of the Firebag middle marker. Based on regional core observations and core in OV wells, the Waterways Formation consists of multiple cycles of green-grey shaly lime mudstone overlain by cleaner light grey lime mudstone. The top of the Waterways Formation is an erosional unconformity representing the end of Paleozoic time. No discernible porosity is present in the well. 2.2.2 MCMURRAY FORMATION The McMurray Formation is the lowest part of the Mannville Group and unconformably overlies the Devonian Waterways Formation (see Figure 2-9 and Figure 2-1, shown previously). Figure 2-10 shows a McMurray Formation isopach map with variations in thickness of 45 to 115 m, primarily because of relief on the pre-Cretaceous unconformity. An elongated northwest to southeast trending thick area is prominent in the southwest part of the project area and is the result of a combination of erosion and dissolution or collapse of the Devonian section. The elevation of the top McMurray Formation surface ranges from roughly 300 to 340 m above sea level in the project area (see Figure 2-11). Relief on the McMurray structure was caused by dissolution of the underlying Devonian section and compaction of muddy abandoned channel fill within the McMurray Formation. An arcuate (i.e., curved or bowed) depression in the central part of the project area overlies an abandoned channel that is the principal defining feature for the development area boundary. In the project area, Imperial has subdivided the McMurray Formation into three units (Figure 2-1, shown previously) that are useful for mapping the bitumen resource: Lower McMurray lower Middle McMurray upper Middle McMurray The Upper McMurray is thin-to-absent in the project area and has not been split out as a separate unit. Cross-sections of wells showing the structure and stratigraphy of the entire section within the project area are shown in: Figure 2-12 for a south-north cross-section Figure 2-13 for a west-east cross-section The Lower McMurray occurs mainly in low areas of the top Devonian surface and appears to be consistent with the Lower McMurray as identified by Hein (2006) in this region. Imperial also interprets the thick sands of the Lower McMurray to be of fluvial origin. The main occurrence of Lower McMurray is in 2-16 Imperial Oil Resources Ventures Limited December 2013 CC012 Section 2.2 GEOLOGY STRATIGRAPHY the thick area that trends north-northwest to south-southeast in the southwest corner of the project area and another thick area extending beyond the project area in the northeast. The Lower McMurray in the southwest area contains the basal aquifer at well 1AA/09-08-093-07W4. The Lower McMurray in the northeast area has a mix of high-bitumen saturated sandstone and high-water saturated sandstone at well 1AA/16-14-094-07W4.
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  • AER/AGS Open File Report 2017-08: Lithostratigraphy, Palynology, And

    AER/AGS Open File Report 2017-08: Lithostratigraphy, Palynology, And

    AER/AGS Open File Report 2017-08 Lithostratigraphy, Palynology, and Biostratigraphy of the Athabasca Oil Sands Deposit, Northeastern Alberta AER/AGS Open File Report 2017-08 Lithostratigraphy, Palynology, and Biostratigraphy of the Athabasca Oil Sands Deposit, Northeastern Alberta F. J. Hein1 and G. Dolby2 1 Alberta Energy Regulator Alberta Geological Survey 2 Graham Dolby & Associates January 2018 ©Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Alberta, 2018 ISBN 978-1-4601-2219-8 The Alberta Energy Regulator/Alberta Geological Survey (AER/AGS), its employees and contractors make no warranty, guarantee or representation, express or implied, or assume any legal liability regarding the correctness, accuracy, completeness or reliability of this publication. Any references to proprietary software and/or any use of proprietary data formats do not constitute endorsement by AER/AGS of any manufacturer’s product. If you use information from this publication in other publications or presentations, please acknowledge the AER/AGS. We recommend the following reference format: Hein, F.J. and Dolby, G. (2018): Lithostratigraphy, palynology, and biostratigraphy of the Athabasca Oil Sands deposit, northeastern Alberta; Alberta Energy Regulator, AER/AGS Open File Report 2017- 08, 105 p. Publications in this series have undergone only limited review and are released essentially as submitted by the author. Author address: G. Dolby 6719 Leaside Drive S.W. Calgary, AB, T3E 6H6 Canada E-mail: [email protected] Published January 2018 by: Alberta Energy Regulator Alberta Geological Survey 4th Floor, Twin Atria Building 4999 – 98th Avenue Edmonton, AB T6B 2X3 Canada Tel: 780.638.4491 Fax: 780.422.1459 E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.ags.aer.ca AER/AGS Open File Report 2017-08 (January 2018) • iii Contents Acknowledgements ...................................................................................................................................